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I can most easily sum up my reactions to Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith by saying that it was pretty bad, but I loved it anyway. Don't get me wrong: the things Lucas does well, he does very, very well. The visuals are unparalleled in my experience. The pacing is good, much better than Episodes I and II, and I didn't start to zone out during the extended action sequences as I did during every single viewing of The Two Towers and The Return of the King, each of which I saw several times in the theater. There are a lot of very funny moments consisting of little things going on in the background of Ep III - droids in unexpected places, minor characters wearing unexpected expressions - that enliven the film, and the actors do as good a job with the dialogue they're given as could possibly be expected.

As for the dialogue itself...well, since I've only seen the film once, I don't remember most of the lines that made me want to gag, so I can afford to be generous and not talk about it. Let's just say that "bad" is probably generous; I'm thinking Kingdom of Heaven would sound like a masterpiece by comparison. I'm not sure that Padme had one single line that made her sound like a Senator and former Queen, and I kept wanting to smack her and tell her to do something already instead of sniveling.

I think it's a problem for the filmmaker that we're supposed to like and identify with the Jedi, the characters who aren't overtly expressing their emotions...and we're supposed to root against the ones who are. It's so easy to share Anakin's frustration and anger, not when he starts making really stupid choices but before that, when the Jedi talk just as much like hide-bound bureaucrats as Amidala accused the Senate of being back in Ep I. Sometimes Anakin's concerns seem very juveline and petty, but all the Jedi seem irresponsible for not noticing what's going on with him, leaving all those choices to a kid who's getting neither the support he needs nor the acceptance he craves. And then there are moments of remembering what he's going to grow up to be, and I find myself asking, "Why am I watching a movie about a young Hitler that's trying to make me feel sorry for him!" For everything bad I've said about Star Trek's scriptwriting over the years, I want to say here and now that even the worst episodes are better written than a lot of Star Wars.

Of course, I'm going to see Ep III again this weekend with my kids. Some childhood habits die hard. Star Trek's one of mine and Star Wars is another.

Trek BBS Today

Below are some of the topics currently being discussed at the Trek BBS:

-How do these detailed holographic histories like in "These Are the Voyages..." get put together, anyway?

-What was the best scene in Revenge of the Sith?

-UPN's fall schedule - are they nuts?

More topics can be found at the Trek BBS!

Trek Two Years Ago

These were some of the major news items from May 2003:

• Berman: 'The Expanse' Inspired By 'Trek' Features
  Enterprise executive producer Rick Berman said that the decision to place Earth in peril in the second season finale was influenced by two Star Trek feature films:

  I think one of the things that motivated us is in analyzing the 10 existing Star Trek movies, we were looking for something that would help torque up our series and add a little dimension to get a little added excitement towards the end of the season...we saw that two of the most popular movies...were Star Trek IV, which was the one about whales, and Star Trek VIII, which was First Contact. These were both films that had to do with the future of Earth being at stake. And we decided that that would be a great place to start.

• 'Nemesis' DVD Released in US Today
  Tenth feature film Star Trek: Nemesis arrived on DVD in North America, featuring commentary, an extensive gallery of images and deleted scenes including a telepathic attack on Deanna Troi and the arrival of a new first officer for the Enterprise-E. And Pocket Books announced that a new series of novels would fill in the gaps between Insurrection and Nemesis to explain the changes.

• Bakula Lobbied Producers For Tougher Archer
  Scott Bakula revealed that he campaigned for Enterprise's commanding officer to toughen up after becoming "frustrated" with where his character was heading. The actor said that he approached the producers and lobbied for a change in Captain Archer's attitude, asking that he toughen up against the Suliban and some of the other threats instead of avoiding them.

More news can be found in the archives.

Poll Results

Below are the results of the most recent TrekToday poll:

How would you rate 'These Are the Voyages...'? 9-10 21.8% - (634 Votes) 1-2 21.4% - (622 Votes) 7-8 18.8% - (547 Votes) 5-6 15.3% - (445 Votes) 3-4 11.4% - (332 Votes) Wasn't able to see it 7.2% - (209 Votes) Didn't want to see it 3.7% - (109 Votes) Total Votes: 2898

Please vote in our new poll and rate "Terra Prime," which got left out last week as people were evaluating "These Are the Voyages..."

Happy Birthday!

Today is the birthday of John Billingsley, who plays Dr. Phlox on Enterprise.

Today's Television Listings

UPN will not air Star Trek: Enterprise tonight, instead showing a two-hour America's Next Top Model special. Enterprise reruns are scheduled to return next week with "Daedalus" at 8 p.m.

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